•after Mickey decides to stay in the parallel universe, Rose feels guilty. The Doctor tried to comfort her the night it happens •
Rose let out another painfully long sigh. The Doctor looked up from his work on the console. "Are you alright?" He asked, "that's the third time you've sighed."
Her bottom lip trembled, but she managed to hide it from him. "S'okay," she tried to shrug. "Think I'm gonna change out of this maid's outfit now, though. Get some sleep."
The Doctor's lip twitched. "Well, if it's any consolation, you look lovely," he said warmly.
Rose blushed. "Thank you, Doctor," she stood and walked down the corridor to her room.
The Doctor watched her leave and then let out a sigh of his own. He knew something was wrong with her. He always knew. And he wanted to take care of her.
He blew out his cheeks, uncertain. He stood in one position for about ten minutes before deciding to go after her.
The Doctor walked down the corridor to Rose's room and knocked on the door. Her lights were off, she was probably in bed, but he needed to make sure she was alright.
"Rose?" He called.
"Yes?" Her voice was weak.
"I'm coming in," it wasn't a request. He opened the door and shut the door behind himself.
Rose sat up in bed, her hair tousled, and peered at him through the darkness. "It's all my fault," she choked out.
That was all the invitation the Doctor needed. He kicked off his shoes and removed his jacket and crawled under the covers next to her. "What is?" He asked softly.
"Mickey staying there, in the parallel. It's my fault." She turned on her side to face him, the only clear things through the darkness were his eyes. "He said I didn't need him."
"Do you?" The Doctor's voice was quiet and tentative, as if he were approaching some sort of skittish animal.
Rose paused, thinking for a moment. "No," she said with a realization, and groaned. "That makes it worse!"
"How?" The Doctor asked, "it validates his decision."
"But he left because his situation was validated," she rolled back onto her back. "He knew I didn't need him."
"But you used to."
"Yeah."
"So why don't you now?"
She bit her lip. "I can't say," she said quietly.
"Sure you can!" The Doctor said brightly, "you can tell me anything, you know that."
"I know..." She said carefully, "but not this."
He reached over the space between them and touched her shoulder. "Rose." His voice was nearly stern.
Rose let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. "Cause I need you now, and he knew that. Knew I wouldn't leave you."
The Doctor sighed. It made sense now. Mickey had said "go after her. You can only chase one of us and it's never gonna be me."
"You wanted me to follow you," he said plainly.
She nodded slowly. "I didn't even consider the possibility that you might follow Mickey. Just thought you'd come after me."
"I didn't think I was going to go after him either," the Doctor admitted, "I knew I'd go after you."
"Did you?"
"Well, yeah, you running off after your dad all alone didn't seem like a grand idea."
"It didn't?"
"No."
"...you weren't worried about Mickey walking off on his own?
"N-oh," he turned to Rose again, his eyes wide with realization. "I guess I wasn't really thinking."
"What WERE you thinking?"
"I was thinking that is Mickey caused a paradox I was going to kill him, but I was worried that you might see something horrible." He shrugged. "I'll confess that a lot of today I thought you didn't need me."
She glanced at him. "Why?"
"You wanted to go with Pete... You didn't seem scared at all, and don't get me wrong, that bravery of yours made me... Well, it made me proud. But I don't want you traipsing around the universe and not needed the person who's brought you about the universe." He swallowed, realizing the gravity of his words.
She closed the space between them and laid her head on his chest. Her left arm found its way around his waist. He froze for a moment, then wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer.
"I'm always gonna need you, Doctor," she said quietly. "That's part of the reason I stick around. The other being that I like the company round here."
He grinned. "So you really weren't afraid, when you went with Pete?"
"Course I was, I was walking to my death," Rose said plainly. "I mostly did it to impress you."
He was glad she couldn't see his face, he was grinning so widely. Without thinking, he pressed his lips to her head. "You know Mickey's going to be just fine."
She sighed softly. "Yeah, I think I do, now. Thank you, Doctor."
The Doctor thought that if he were to leave, it would have to be right then. But he couldn't bring himself to do it.
Timelords only need sleep once or twice a week, and he used that opportunity, lying with Rose in her bed, to sleep alongside her.
He couldn't tell her. Not yet.